7 comments:

Anonymous
said...

MAIL ON SUNDAY WITHDRAWS ALLEGATION OF IMPROPRIETY

I am pleased to be able to confirm that the Mail on Sunday has accepted that I have not abused an allowance available to MPs to purchase the second home they must have to enable them to live both in or near their constituencies and in London.

An article in last week's paper (10th Feb) claimed that i had used this allowance to fund the purchase of a terraced property in Worcester that I then let out. this allegation was completely without foundation and the newspaper has today (17th Feb) published the following letter from me, setting the record straight:

"Regarding your article "Revealed: 'MPs' buy-to-let scheme funded by the taxpayer'", at no stage have I let out any property on which I have claimed Additional Costs Allowance. I bought a flat in Kennington eight years ago, and I still live in it.

"The small terraced property in Worcester you listed against my name is fully and properly declared in the Register of Members' Interests. I purchased it some eighteen years ago and lived in it prior to my election to Parliament. I am still paying off the mortgage entirely out of my own resources. Any suggestion that I have misused taxpayers' money is both offensive and wrong."